Independent Media Coverage by
BY: MELANIE GRAYCE WEST
READ ORIGINAL ARTICLEThe ban would make the delicacy illegal in the city by 2022.
New York duck farmers have appealed to state officials for help in blocking a New York City law that bans the sale of foie gras in restaurants and shops.
Hudson Valley Foie Gras, one of the state’s largest producers of the specialty product, said it plans to file a notice this week with the state’s Department of Agriculture and Markets seeking a formal review of the city’s law, which was signed by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio in November.
Foie gras, or fattened duck or goose liver, is made by force-feeding the birds several times daily to expand their livers beyond their normal size before slaughter. Animal-rights activists and City Council members have said the process is inhumane. Foie gras is served in several high-end restaurants, including Manhattan’s Tocqueville and Eleven Madison Park.
The city’s ban would make the delicacy illegal in the city by 2022.
According to a spokesman for Hudson Valley Foie Gras, the city’s law will prohibit the sale of its primary product in its largest market, causing a loss of some $9 million a year in sales from its $28 million business. New York City is the largest market for foie gras.
A farm in an agricultural district can submit to the state’s Department of Agriculture and Markets a request for the review of a local law that it believes may unreasonably restrict the farm’s operation, according to state regulations.
The plan to send a formal request to review the law follows a letter that Sergio Saravia, president of La Belle Farms, sent on Friday to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
In his letter, Mr. Saravia asked the governor for help in overturning the ban, which “deals a fatal blow to the duck farmers of New York State.”
“What right do city legislators have in passing laws that affect rural businesses outside the city limits?” wrote Mr. Saravia. “We believe this ban violates the Agricultural Districts Law in New York that specifically protects farmers against bills like this one which unreasonably restrict farm operations.”
A spokesman for Mr. Cuomo deferred comment on the letter to the Department of Agriculture and Markets. A spokeswoman for that agency said the department is reviewing the situation.
“Once the Department receives the formal request for a review of this local law, we will determine whether it is in the scope of our powers and what the next steps will be,” said the spokeswoman.
Hudson Valley-area duck farmers are among the few U.S. producers of foie gras. A challenge to the city’s law was expected.
Animal-rights activists and City Council members have said the practice is inhumane.
Jeremy Unger, a spokesman for Carlina Rivera, a Manhattan Democrat who championed the legislation, said that the law will stand up to any challenge.
“Supporters of force-feeding, which is one of the cruelest practices taking place in our nation’s food industry, have tried for years to legally end California’s ban to no avail, and we are happy that it will be coming to a similar end soon in New York City,” said Mr. Unger.
—Jimmy Vielkind contributed to this article
Independent Media Coverage by
BY: MELANIE GRAYCE WEST
READ ORIGINAL ARTICLEA committee of the New York City Council unanimously approved a bill banning the sale of foie gras in the city, a measure that pits farmers against animal-rights activists and ultimately affects a small number of the city’s high-end restaurants and food purveyors.
The measure was part of animal-welfare legislation approved by the committee, which included a bill prohibiting the trafficking of wild birds, including pigeons, and a measure prohibiting carriage horses from working when the temperature is higher than 90 degrees.
The full council is expected to vote on the foie gras legislation Wednesday.
City Councilman Mark Levine, a Manhattan Democrat, acknowledged that the passage of the animal-welfare legislation would affect businesses. “But as society evolves, we have a right to expect that business practices evolve as well,” he said.
City Councilwoman Alicka Ampry-Samuel, a Democrat representing Brooklyn, approved the measures, but said it was a difficult vote because the legislation might affect the livelihood of many people and businesses.
“It’s quite difficult in one sense to protect animals and, in another sense, cause harm for just everyday people who live in New York,” she said.
Duck farms in and around the Hudson Valley are among the few U.S. producers of foie gras, which is fattened duck or goose liver. The luxury product is made by force-feeding the birds multiple times daily to expand their livers several times their normal size before slaughter.
Farmers say the birds are raised on small farms in a stress-free and comfortable environment and that the feeding process doesn’t cause discomfort. Animal-rights activists say the force-feeding practice is inhumane.
Sergio Saravia, secretary of the Catskill Foie Gras Collective, an advocacy group representing farms, said that hundreds of jobs and millions in revenue will be lost as a result of the City Council legislation. New Yorkers, he said, will lose the right to choose what they can eat.
The legislation, said Mr. Saravia, “is an unfair assault on local farmers based on misinformation from animal-rights activists.”
Write to Melanie Grayce West at melanie.west@wsj.com
Corrections & Amplifications
The Catskill Foie Gras Collective opposes a New York City Council proposal to ban the sale of foie gras. An earlier version of this article incorrectly called the group the Hudson Valley Foie Gras Collective. (Oct. 29, 2019)